ST. CLAIR SHORES (WWJ) - A St. Clair Shores police officer is being hailed a hero for a simple act of kindness.

Officer Todd Bing was behind Delores Marotta in line at gas station when he noticed she had only $3 to put gas in her car. When the officer learned that's all she had, he put in $20 of his own money to help her out.

The owner of the Citgo station, Seth Kasyouhanan, shared the story on Facebook last Friday, explaining: "He went back and finished pumping and she told him her husband had recently passed away and she’s stuck paying all their bills and is behind every month. This $20 really helped her! She would of most likely ended up running out of gas."

"There is so much negativity toward officers," Kasyouhanan wrote, adding"...we should all respect, appreciate, and thank them for what they do."

While the now-viral post continues to get "likes" by the thousands, Kasyouhanan decided he wants to do more to help the woman. A Gofundme account he set up has already raised nearly $3,000 toward a $5,000 goal.

A message on the page reads: "She’s roughly short $1,000 on her bills every month. Some days she has money for gas and groceries and some days she doesn’t. I believe it’s only right to help someone that’s struggling. If we all get together and work as a team we can make this world a better place!" (To donate, visit this link).